The new black currant (Ribes nigrum L.) cultivar, was created as part of the planned crossbreeding program beginning in 1998. in Courtenay, British Columbia, Canada. The new cross was completed in 2005 and selected for further field trials in 2008. The female (seed) parent used was ‘Zusha’ (‘Minaj Shmyrev’ x ‘Ershistaya’) and the male (pollen) parent used was ‘Titania’ (‘Altaskaya Dessertnaya’ x [‘Consort’ x ‘Kayaanin’]), defined as ‘Zusha’ x ‘Titania’. ‘Titania’ is the subject of U.S. Plant Pat. No. 11,439 granted Jul. 11, 2000. The patent status of ‘Zusha’ is unknown.
‘Stikine’ is the product of a 2001 cross between ‘Zusha’ as seed parent and ‘Titania’ as pollen parent. It was necessary to time the flowering as ‘Zusha’ flowers 7-10 days prior to ‘Titania’. We used a cooler to delay flowering in ‘Zusha’.
The crosses were made in a greenhouse to avoid losses due to frost. Pollen was extracted from anthers, using forceps. The anthers were placed under a heat lamp overnight. After removing the anthers from the seed parent with forceps, and with a separate set of forceps and with the aid of a magnifying visor, pollen was applied to each pistil. The pollinated flowers were covered with a bag for two weeks.
Seeds were collected from the pollinated flowers and stored in a cool place until they were planted in seed trays. The seeds were germinated in the greenhouse. Seedlings were screened for symptoms of White pine blister rust before selection. The plants were grown out for two years. Each year each plant was examined for symptoms of white pine blister rust. In 2011, each plant was evaluated for yield potential, growth habit, resistance to powdery mildew fruit size.
Trials were replicated in the following locations in Canada:                Courtenay, British Columbia        West Saanich, British Columbia        Chilliwack, British Columbia        